Culture of Nocardia ATCC 31309

ABSTRACT

A novel antibiotic C-14482 A 1  is produced by cultivating a microorganism belonging to the genus Nocardia and capable of producing Antibiotic C-14482 A 1  is a culture medium, whereby Antibiotic C-14482 A 1  is elaborated and accumulated in the culture medium and recovering the same antibiotic. 
     Antibiotic C-14482 A 1  is useful as a germicide or disinfectant.

This is a divisional of Ser. No. 930,317, filed Aug. 2, 1978 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,298,600.

This invention relates to Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ (hereinafter sometimes referred to briefly as C-14482 A₁) which is a novel antibiotic and a method for producing said antibiotic. The present inventors collected samples from the natural kingdom including a large variety of soil samples and undertook screenings of the microorganisms isolated from such samples for the antibiotics which they might produce . This exploration and investigation resulted in the discoveries, that a certain microorganism is able to produce a novel antibiotic, that this microorganism belongs to the genus Nocardia and that cultivating said microorganism in a suitable nutrient medium under controlled fermentation conditions results in an accumulation of said antibiotic in the cultured broth. These findings were followed by further research, which has culminated in this invention.

This invention is, therefore, concerned with:

(1) Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ which has the following properties:

(I) Elementary analysis: (%): C 58.02; 59.18; H 5.84; 5.70; N 16.32; 17.14

(II) Melting point: Not less than 300° C.

(III) Specific rotation: [α]_(D) ²⁴.5 +150°±30° (c=0.05, ethanol)

(IV) Ultraviolet absorption spectrum: λ_(max) ^(MeOH) (E₁ cm^(1%)) 214 nm±2 (503±50); λ_(max) ^(MeOH) (E₁ cm^(1%)) 281 nm±2 (209±10); λ_(max) ^(MeOH) (E₁ cm^(1%)) 498 nm±2 (46.0±5)

(V) Infrared absorption spectrum (KBr): Principal peaks (cm⁻¹): 3430, 3175, 2940, 2890, 2850, 1680, 1650, 1625, 1600, 1455, 1390, 1345, 1250, 1170, 1140, 1110, 1075, 1025, 995, 935, 910, 825

(VI) Solubility: Practically insoluble: Hexane, petroleum ether. Sparingly soluble: Ethanol, butanol, ethylacetate, water. Soluble: Methanol, chloroform.

(VII) Color reactions: Negative: Sakaguchi reaction, Barton reaction. Potassium permanganate decolorized.

(VIII) Acidity, neutrality or basicity: Weakly basic.

(IX) Color of crystals: Dark red to reddish brown.

(X) Molecular weight: 4.6×10² (measured by Vapor pressure osmometry in CH₃ COOC₂ H₅)

(2) a method for producing Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ characterized by cultivating a microorganism which belongs to the genus Nocardia and is capable of producing Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ in a culture medium to have Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ elaborated and accumulated in the cultured broth and recovering the same antibiotic.

and

(3) A substantially pure culture of the microorganism belonging to the genus Nocardia having the characteristics identifiable with those of ATCC-31309, said culture being capable of producing, in a culture medium containing assimilable carbon and digestible nitrogen sources, a recoverable amount of Antibiotic C-14482 A₁.

In the present method for the production of Antibiotic C-14482 A₁, any microorganisms which belong to the genus Nocardia and are capable of producing Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ can be employed. In the present specification these microorganisms are en bloc referred to briefly as C-14482 A₁ -producing strain.

As the typical example of the microorganism employable in the present method for the production of Antibiotic C-14482 A₁, strain No. C-14482, which was isolated by the present inventors in the course of the search for antibiotic producers, is mentioned.

The present inventors investigated microbiological characteristics of strain No. C-14482 by procedures analogous to the method of Schirling and Gottlieb (International Journal of Systematic Bacteriology 16, 313-340, 1966). The results obtained by cultures of the microorganism at 28° C. for 21 days are as follows.

(1) Morphological characteristics

The vegetative mycelium is colorless to pale yellow or orange yellow and develops well with branches both on agar and in liquid media.

The vegetative mycelium measures 0.5 to 1.2 μm in diameter for the most part and, in late phases of the cultivation, divides itself into fragments resembling rod bacteria or elongated rod barteria or branched hyphae. This strain gives good growth on various taxonomic media and while the aerial mycelia well develop on the vegetative mycelium, the former appears in many cases as if it had grown on a large number of coremia-like bodies (50-180 μm×400-1500 μm). Many of aerial hyphae are flexuous or straight but some appear to be loosely spiral or branching on but rare occasions. Microscopic examination of aged cultures reveals that in few cases do the spores occur in chains, there being few of what are called conidia or spores. When examined under a microscope, cells taken from the surface of such a culture revealed the presence of many elongated ellipsoidal (0.5-1.2 μm×4.8-6.8 μm) and ellipsoidal (0.8-1.2 μm×1.5-4 μm) cells which looked like fragmented cells or arthrospores, the surfaces of which were smooth as examined by electron microscopy.

The aerial mycelium is generally sparse and although fair growth is noted on many media over 3 to 7 days of incubation, it sometimes disappears as cultivation is carried out for 7 to 10 days.

When cultivated in liquid media, the microorganism shows motility in a growing phase when the mycelia show polymorphism, i.e. the forms of rod, branched cells thereof or elongated rod, either as they are independent, in chains or branched. Electron microscopic examination shows a large number of elongated flagella around the cells.

(2) The constituents of cells

The strain was shake-cultured in modified ISP No. 1 medium at 28° C. for 66 to 90 hours and in the well-grown stationary phase, the cells were collected and rinsed. By the method of B. Becker et al. (Applied Microbiology 12, 421 (1964) and the method of M. P. Lechevalier. (Journal of Laboratory and Clinical Medicine 71, 934 (1968)), the above cells were examined for diaminopimelic acid and sugar composition. The former was found to be the meso-form and, as to the latter, spots corresponding to galactose and arabinose, respectively, were observed. According to the method of B. Becker et al (Applied Microbiology 17, 236, 1965) cell walls were collected and analyzed for diaminopimelic acid, sugar and amino acids. Regarding diaminopimelic acid, its meso-form was detected. However, while a large amount of galactose was in evidence as the constituent sugar, there was no evidence of arabinose. As to amino acids, glutamic acid and alanine were clearly detected, although lysine and glycine could be found only in traces.

(3) Cultural Characteristics on Taxonomical Media

The strain gives comparatively good growth invariably on various media and the color of the vegetative mycelium is colorless to pale yellow in early phases of incubation but is pale yellowish brown to yellow brown hues in later stages. The organism does not produce soluble pigments in most taxonomical media but produces a faint brown pigment in a few media. The aerial mycelium is powdery, generally moderate and white to yellow or pale yellowish brown. The aerial mycelium disappears on many media on prolonged culture (approximetely 2 weeks or longer), with the surface of vegetative mycelium beginning to become glossy. The cultural features of this particular strain are summarized in Table 1.

Table 1 Cultural characteristics of strain No. C-14482 on taxonomical media

(A) Sucrose nitrate agar:

Growth (G): Poor, thin, colorless

Aerial mycelium (AM) Sparse, white

Soluble pigment (SP): None

(B) Glucose nitrate agar

G: Poor, thin, colorless

AM: Very sparse, white

SP: None

(C) Glycerol nitrate agar:

G: Moderate, colorless to Lt Melon Yellow or Colonial Yellow Maize (3 ea or 2 ga)* or Brite Melon Yellow (3 ia)*, coremia-like bodies formed.

AM: Very sparse, white to Lt Melon Yellow (3 ea)*

SP: None

(D) Glucose asparagine agar

G: Moderate, colorless to Melon Yellow (3 ga)*

AM: Sparse, Lt Melon Yellow (3 ea)*

SP: None

(E) Glycerol aspargine agar:

G: Moderate, colorless to Melon Yellow (3 ga)*

AM: Moderate, white to Lt Wheat (2 ea)*

SP: None

(F) Nutrient agar:

G: Moderate, colorless to Lt Ivory (2 ca)* or Melon Yellow (3 ga)*

AM: None

SP: None

(G) Calcium malate agar:

G: Moderate, colorless to Melon Yellow (3 ga)* or Brite Marigold (3 pa)*; coremia-like bodies formed.

AM: Sparse, white

SP: None

(H) Yeast extract-malt extract agar:

G: Luxuriant, colorless to Melon Yellow (3 ga)* or Brite Maize (3 la)*; coremia-like bodies formed.

AM: Moderate, white to Pearl Pink (3 ca)* or Lt Melon Yellow (3 ea)*

SP: Pale yellowish brown

(I) Oatmeal agar:

G: Moderate, colorless to Melon Yellow (3 ga)* or Lt Ivory (2 ca)*

AM: Moderate, white to Lt Melon Yellow (3 ea)* or Pearl Pink (3 ca)*

SP: None or pale yellowish brown

(J) Starch agar:

G: Moderate, colorless to Melon Yellow or Colonial Yellow Maize (3 ga or 2 ga)*

AM: Sparse, white to Lt Melon Yellow (3 ea)*

SP: None

(K) Peptone yeast extract iron agar:

G: Moderate, colorless to Beige Brown (3 ig)* or Brite Maize (3 la)*

AM: None or sparse, white

SP: Pale yellowish brown

(L) Tyrosine agar:

G: Moderate, colorless to Beige Brown (3 ig)* or Brite Maize (3 la)*; coremia-like bodies formed.

AM: Sparse, Pearl Pink (3 ca)* or Brite Maize (3 la)*

SP: Light yellowish brown (a tinge of purple)

(4) Physiological characteristics

The physiological characteristics of the strain are shown in Table 2. Temperature range for the growth: 12° C. to 38° C. The temperature range for which the aerial mycelia grow on agar (ISP No. 2) is 20° to 35° C.

                  TABLE 2                                                          ______________________________________                                         The physiological characteristics of strain No.                                C-14482                                                                        ______________________________________                                         Temperature range for the growth:                                                                       12 to 38° C.                                   Temperature range for the growth of the                                                                 20 to 35° C.                                   aerial mycelia                                                                 Liquefaction of gelatin: Very weak                                             Hydrolysis of starch:    Positive                                              Reduction of nitrates:   Positive                                              Peptonization of milk:   Positive                                              Coagulation of milk:     Negative                                              Decomposition of casein: Positive                                              Production of melanoid pigments:                                               (peptone yeast extract iron agar):                                                                      Negative                                              (tyrosine agar):         Negative                                              Decomposition of tyrosine:                                                                              Positive                                              Decomposition of xanthine:                                                                              Negative                                              Decomposition of hypoxanthine:                                                                          Negative                                              Tolerance to lysozyme:   Positive                                              Tolerance to sodium chloride:                                                                           2%                                                    ______________________________________                                    

(5) Utilization of various carbon sources

The utilization of various carbon sources was investigated using a medium described by Pridham and Gottlieb (Journal of Bacteriology 56, 107 (1948)) and a basal medium of the same composition plus 0.1% of yeast extract (Difco Co.). The results are shown in Table 3.

                  TABLE 3                                                          ______________________________________                                         The utilization of carbon sources by strain No.                                C-14482                                                                        Source of carbon  Growth                                                       ______________________________________                                         D-Xylose          +          ++*                                               L-Arabinose       -          +                                                 D-Glucose         ++         ++                                                D-Galactose       ++         ++                                                D-Fructose        +++        +++                                               L-Rhamnose        ++         +                                                 D-Mannose         ++         +++                                               Sucrose           ++         ++                                                Lactose           ±       -                                                 Maltose           +          ++                                                Trehalose         ++         ++                                                Raffinose         ±       -                                                 Melibiose         ±       ±                                              i-Inositol        -          ±                                              D-Sorbitol        -          ±                                              D-Mannitol        ++         ++                                                Glycerol          ++         +++                                               Soluble starch    +          ++                                                Control           -          -                                                 ______________________________________                                          Note:                                                                          *Basal medium with 0.1% yeast extract                                          +++: Luxuriant growth                                                          ++: Good growth                                                                +: Growth                                                                      ±: Poor growth                                                              -: No growth                                                             

(6) Other characteristics

The cells were harvested by the procedure previously described in "(2) The constituents of cells" and DNA was prepared by a procedure analogous to that of J. Murmar et al. (Journal of Molecular Biology, 3, 208, 1961). The G-C (Guanine-Cytosine) content of the DNA was found to be about 71 mole %.

Gram-staining of the vegetative mycelium of this strain was positive.

The above characteristics of strain No. C-14482 were compared with the descriptions in S. A. Waksman's "The Actinomycetes Vol. 2" (The Williams and Wilkins Co., 1961); R. E. Buchanan and N. E. Gibbons, "Bergey's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology, 8th ed., 1974"; and other literature references.

The above observations that (1) the strain in later phases of incubation is fragmented into the shapes of rod or elongated rods, or branched cells thereof, (2) it gives few well-defined conidia or spores, (3) the surfaces of its colonies on agar are leathery and, in many cases, are glistening like bacterial colony and (4) the G-C content of the mycelium is about 71 mole %, coupled with other characteristics, suggest that the strain might belong to Group III of the genus Nocardia. However, in view of our inability to find any known strain of microorganism which shared all of the above cultural characteristics, physiological characteristics, cell motility, cell wall composition, etc. with our present strain, we identified this strain as a novel species, and designated Nocardia sp. No. C-14482. In the present specification, Nocardia sp. No. C-14482 is briefly referred as strain No. C-14482.

Strain No. C-14482 has been deposited in the following culture collections with the accession numbers indicated. Institute for Fermentation, Osaka (IFO) Japan, IFO-13725; Fermentation Research Institute, Agency of Industrial Science and Technology (FERM), Japan FERM-P No. 4130; The American Type Culture Collection (ATCC), U.S.A., ATCC-31309.

C-14482 A₁ -producing strain is liable, as observed generally in microorganism of the genus Nocardia, to undergo variations and mutations, whether spontaneously or under the influence of a mutagen. For example, the many variants of the strain which are obtainable by irradiation with X-rays, gamma rays, ultraviolet light, etc., by monocell isolation, by culture on media containing various chemicals, or by any other mutagenic treatment, as well as the mutants spontaneously derived from the strain, should not be considered to represent any other distinct species but, rather, any of such variants and mutants, only if capable of elaborating C-14482 A₁ may be invariably utilized for the purposes of this invention. By way of example, subjecting C-14482 A₁ -producing strain to various mutagenic treatments yields variants which produce light yellowish to light yellowish brown or brown soluble pigments, variants which give colorless vegetative mycelia, variants which give reddish brown to organe red vegetative mycelia, variants which give yellowish green substrate mycelia or soluble pigments, variants which give abundant aerial mycelia which are white in color or variants whose mycelia are ready to be fragmented.

The medium employed for the cultivation of the C-14482 A₁ -producing strain may be whichever of a liquid and a solid medium only if it contains nutrients which the strain may utilize, although a liquid medium is preferred for high-production purposes. The medium may comprise carbon and nitrogen sources which C-14482 A₁ -producing strain may assimilate and digest, inorganic matter, trace nutrients, etc. As examples of said carbon sources there may be mentioned glucose, lactose, sucrose, maltose, dextrin, starch, glycerol, mannitol, sorbitol, fats and oils (e.g. soybean oil, lard oil, chicken oil, etc.), n-paraffins and so forth. The nitrogen sources may for example be meat extract, yeast extract, dried yeast, soybean meal, corn steep liquor, peptone, cottonseed flour, spent molasses, urea, ammonium salts (e.g. ammonium sulfate, ammonium chloride, ammonium nitrate, ammonium acetate, etc.) and so forth. The medium may further contain salts of sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, etc., salts of iron, manganese, zinc, cobalt, nickel, etc., salts of phosphoric acid, boric acid, etc. and organic acid salts such as acetates and propionates. Further, the medium may contain, as added, various amino acids (e.g. glutamic acid, aspartic acid, alanine, lysine, methionine, proline, etc.), peptides (e.g. dipeptides, tripeptides, etc.), vitamins (e.g. B₁, B₂, nicotinic acid, B₁₂, C, etc.), nucleic acids (e.g. purine, pyrimidine and derivatives thereof) and so forth. For the purpose of adjusting the pH of the medium, there may be added an inorganic or organic acid, alkalis, buffer or the like. Suitable amounts of oils, fats, surfactants, etc. may also be added as antifoams.

The cultivation may be conducted by any of the stationary, shake, submerged aerobic and other cultural methods. For high production runs, submerged aerobic culture is of course preferred. While the conditions of culture depends upon the conditions and compositions of medium, the strain, cultural method and other factors, it is normally preferable to carry out incubation at 15° to 35° C. preferably 20° to 32° C., with an initial pH of about 5.0 to 9.0, preferably about 7.0. Particularly desirable is a temperature from 25° to 28° C. in an intermediate stage of cultivation, with an initial pH of 6.5 to 7.5. While the incubation time also depends on the same factors as mentioned above, it is advisable to continue the incubation until the titer of the desired antibiotic becomes maximal. In the case of shake culture or aerobic submerged culture in liquid medium, the time required normally ranges from about 3 to 8 days.

From the culture broth obtained in the above method, Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ can be advantageously isolated by procedures which are normally utilized in the recovery of metabolites from microbial culture. For example, because Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ is weakly basic, it can be isolated by a suitable combination of procedures utilizing this property. Thus, since Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ occurs primarily in the liquid phase of the culture broth, the broth is first filtered to remove the mycelium and the filtrate is neutralized or made weakly basic. Then, organic solvents more or less immiscible with water may be utilized to isolate the antibiotic. Such organic solvents include, among others, halogenated hydrocarbons (e.g. chloroform, methylene chloride), fatty acid esters (e.g. ethyl acetate, butyl acetate), ketones (e.g. methyl isobutyl ketone), alcohols (e.g. butyl alcohol, isobutyl alcohol), etc. Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ thus extracted by a water-immiscible organic solvent can then be transferred into a water phase by means of a dilute aqueous solution of mineral acid, organic acid or an acidic buffer solution and be thus purified.

Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ as it occurs in the cells can be extracted from the filtered cells with a water-miscible organic solvent such as acetone or methanol, with a dilute aqueous solution of mineral acid or with a mixture thereof.

In certain cases, the culture broth including the cells may as such be made weakly acidic and stirred with a water-soluble organic solvent such as acetone or methanol, the mixture be filtered, the filtrate be concentrated under reduced pressure, the acetone or methanol be distilled off and the residual aqueous solution be treated as described in connection with the filtrate of the cultured broth.

An alternative procedure for recovering Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ from the filtrate of the cultured broth comprises adsorbing the activity with an adsorbent and eluting it off with a suitable solvent. As examples of the adsorbent which may be thus employed, there may be mentioned activated carbon, non-ionic exchange resin such as Amberlite XAD-2 (Rohm and Haas Co., U.S.A.), Diaion HP-10 (Mitsubishi Chemical Industries, Limited, Japan), etc. As preferred examples of eluant, there may be mentioned aqueous alcohols, e.g. aqueous methanol, aqueous butanol, etc.; aqueous acetone; or those aqueous media as previously made acidic by the addition of dilute mineral acid or the like, although Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ may be eluted with an organic solvent such as ethyl acetate or chloroform.

It is also possible to isolate Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ by, taking advantage of its basic property, adsorbing it on a cation exchange resin once and desorbing it with an eluant.

As examples of said cation exchange resin, there may be mentioned Amberlite IRC-50, Amberlite IR-120 (Rohm and Haas Co., U.S.A.), Dowex-50 (Dow Chemical Co., U.S.A.) and CM-Sephadex C-25 (Pharmacia Co., Sweden).

To elute the activity from the resin, use may be made of a dilute aqueous solution of mineral acid, a solution of a salt such as sodium chloride, ammonium formate or the like, a dilute aqueous solution of alkali or a mixture of such a solution with a water-soluble organic solvent such as methanol, acetone or the like. By a suitable combination of the above-described purification procedures the contemplated antibiotic product can be obtained in fairly high purity grade. To obtain a highly purified product, such adsorbent materials as silica gel (Merck, Germany), alumina (Merck, Germany), Sephadex LH-20 (Pharmacia, Sweden), etc. may be employed. As examples of the developing solvent there may be mentioned the solvents which are normally employed for the separation of organic compounds; for example, halogenated hydrocarbons (e.g. chloroform, methylene chloride), alcohols (e.g. methanol, ethanol), mixtures thereof (e.g. mixture of chloroform with methanol) and mixtures of esters (e.g. ethyl acetate) with alcohols for instance.

For the purpose of further purification, methods utilizing differences in the distribution coefficient, methods utilizing certain adsorbents, etc. may be mentioned.

The methods utilizing differences in the distribution coefficient include the distribution method which depends on the difference of coefficients between two solvents forming immiscible phases, the counter-current distribution method and the partition chromatography using cellulose powder as the support material, for instance.

When partitioned between chloroform and water at pH 8.0, C-14482 A₁ is transferred into the chloroform layer. As to the adsorption method, in which silica gel, for instance, is used as the adsorbent, C-14482 A₁ is first adsorbed on a column of silica gel (Merck, Germany) and, then, eluted with a solvent mixture of chloroform and methanol. Subjecting the resultant crude product to thin-layer chromatography with a solvent system of ethyl acetate and methanol for instance yields a pure substance of C-14482 A₁.

Antibiotic C-14482 A₁, obtained in Example 3 and 4 has the following properties.

(1) Elemental analysis: (%): C, 58.02; 59.18; H, 5.84; 5.70; N, 16.32; 17.14

(II) Melting point: Not less than 300° C.

(III) Specific rotation: [α]_(D) ²⁴.5 +150°±30° (c=0.05, ethanol)

(IV) Ultraviolet absorption spectrum: (cf. FIG. 1): λ_(max) ^(MeOH) (E_(lcm) ^(1%)) 214 nm±2 (503±50); λ_(max) ^(MeOH) (E_(lcm) ^(1%)) 281 nm±2 (209±10); λ_(max) ^(MeOH) (E_(lcm) ^(1%)) 498 nm±2 (46.0±5)

(V) Infrared absorption spectrum (KBr): (cf. FIG. 2) Principal peaks: (cm⁻¹): 3430, 3175, 2940, 2890, 2850, 1680, 1650, 1625, 1600, 1455, 1390, 1345, 1250, 1170, 1140, 1110, 1075, 1025, 995, 935, 910, 825

(VI) Solubility: Practically insoluble: Hexane, petroleum ether. Sparingly soluble: Ethanol, butanol, ethylacetate, water Soluble: Methanol, chloroform

(VII) Color reactions: Negative: Sakaguchi reaction, Barton reaction. Potassium permanganate is decolorized.

(VIII) Acidity, neutrality or basicity: Weakly basic.

(IX) Color of crystals: Dark red to reddish brown.

(X) Molecular weight: 4.6×10² (measured by Vapor pressure osmometry, in CH₃ COOC₂ H₅).

(XI) Stability: Between pH 3.0 and pH 8.0, stable at room temperature for 24 hours. Between pH 3.0 and pH 5.0, stable even at 80° C. for 1 hour; at pH 6, slightly unstable when heated at 80° C. for 1 hour; and at pH 7 to 8, fairly unstable.

(XII) Thin-layer chromatography: silica gel (Spot Film f, Tokyo Kasei Co., Japan): Chloroform-methanol (9:1): Rf 0.52 Ethyl acetate-methanol (10:1): Rf 0.38

(XIII) Formation of salts: Being a basic substance, C-14482 A₁ forms water-soluble salts with such acids as hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, phosphoric acid, tartaric acid, glucuronic acid, etc. and forms sparingly soluble salts with such acids as picric acid, picrolonic acid, etc.

As the broad spectrum antibiotics whose crystals have red to reddish purple color, Mitomycin [T. Hata et al. The Journal of Antibiotics, Series A, 9, 141(1956)] and Naphthyridinomycin [D. Kluepfel et al. The Journal of Antibiotics 28, 497(1975)] are mentioned. However, the above two antibiotics are clearly different from the present Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ in absorptions in the ultraviolet and visible regions, and elemental analysis (especially nitrogen content).

Since there is no known antibiotic that shares with this antibiotic the aforementioned chemical properties (particularly, absorptions in the ultraviolet and visible regions of the spectrum) and biological properties which are described later and, therefore, C-14482 A₁ is believed to be a novel substance.

Biological Activity

(A) Antimicrobial activity

Trypticase soy agar medium (hereafter TSA; from Baltimore Biological Limited, U.S.A.), TSA supplemented with 3% of glycerol and TSA supplemented with 1% of glucose were employed and the minimal inhibitory concentrations of C-14482 A₁ against the bacteria, acid-fast bacteria, fungi and yeasts were determined by the agar dilution method. The results are shown in Table 4.

                  TABLE 4                                                          ______________________________________                                         Antimicrobial Spectrum of Antibiotic C-14482 A.sub.1                                                            MIC                                           Test organism           Medium   μg/ml                                      ______________________________________                                         Escherichia coli K12 IFO 3301                                                                          TSA      2                                             Escherichia coli NIHJ   TSA      5                                             Proteus vulgaris IFO 3045                                                                              TSA      10                                            Proteus morganii IFO 3168                                                                              TSA      50                                            Proteus mirabilis IFO 3849                                                                             TSA      10                                            Pseudomonas aeruginosa IFO 3080                                                                        TSA      2                                             Salmonella typhimurium IFO 12529                                                                       TSA      2                                             Salmonella enteritidis IFO 3313                                                                        TSA      10                                            Alcaligenes faecalis IFO 13111                                                                         TSA      1                                             Enterobacter cloacae IFO 12009                                                                         TSA      20                                            Serratia marcescens IFO 3046                                                                           TSA      50                                            Bacillus pumilus IFO 3813                                                                              TSA      2                                             Bacillus subtilis 6633 IFO 3134                                                                        TSA      1                                             Bacillus subtilis PCI 219 IFO 3513                                                                     TSA      1                                             Bacillus cereus IFO 3514                                                                               TSA      2                                             Bacillus megaterium IFO 12108                                                                          TSA      1                                             Bacillus brevis IFO 3331                                                                               TSA      0.2                                           Staphylococcus aureus FDA 209P IFO 12732                                                               TSA      1                                             Staphylococcus aureus OE-R                                                                             TSA      1                                             Staphylococcus aureus 4R                                                                               TSA      1                                             Sarcina lutea IFO 3232  TSA      1                                             Mycobacterium avium IFO 3143                                                                           TSA.Gly  10                                            Mycobacterium avium SM-R                                                                               TSA.Gly  20                                            Mycobacterium avium NM-R                                                                               TSA.Gly  20                                            Mycobacterium smegmatis TSA.Gly  5                                             Mycobacterium phlei     TSA.Gly  5                                             Mycobacterium sp. 607   TSA.Gly  10                                            Aspergillus niger IFO 4066                                                                             TSA.Glu  >100                                          Penicillium chrysogenum IFO 4626                                                                       TSA.Glu  >100                                          Trichophyton rubrum IFO 5467                                                                           TSA.Glu  >100                                          Saccharomyces cerevisiae IFO 0209                                                                      TSA.Glu  >100                                          Candida albicans IFO 0583                                                                              TSA.Glu  >100                                          ______________________________________                                          TSA: Trypticase soy agar                                                       TSA.Gly: Trypticase soy agar supplemented with 3% glycerol                     TSA.Glu: Trypticase soy agar supplemented with 1% glucose                      OER: Oleandomycinerythromycin resistant mutant in vitro                        4R: Tetracyclinestreptomycin-chloramphenicol-erythromycin resistant mutan      in vitro                                                                       SMR: Streptomycin resistance                                                   NMR: Neomycin resistance                                                       IFO number: The accession numbers of Institute for Fermentation, Osaka,        Japan                                                                    

Plasmid R 100, R 100-1 or F was transmitted to Escherichia coli CRT 46, a mutant carrying a thermosensitive chromosome gene, dna A, for the initiation of DNA replication (Hirota et al: Journal of Molecular Biology 35, 175('68)) and the in vitro nalidixic acid-resistant mutant thereof, and thermoresistant revertants (Hfr strains) TE33, TE82 and TE120 were obtained by the method of Nishimura et al. (Journal of Molecular Biology 55, 441('71)). The growth inhibitory activity of Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ was assayed against these strains Escherichia coli by broth dilution technique of Yoshikawa et al. (Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 5, 362('74)]. The spontaneous thermoresistant revertants TE 144 and TE 146 were employed as controls. Growth was evaluated by absorbance at 600 nm and the growth ratio was calculated from the ratio of absorbance for the dosed group to that for the undosed group.

                  TABLE 5                                                          ______________________________________                                                        Ratio of growth                                                 Test strain                                                                            Temperature  0.0625 μg/ml                                                                           0.125 μg/ml                                 ______________________________________                                         TE 33   32° C.                                                                               0.974      0.974                                                  42° C.                                                                               0.548      <0.032                                         TE 82   32° C.                                                                               1.019      1.000                                                  42° C.                                                                               0.353      0.029                                          TE 120  32° C.                                                                               1.000      1.000                                                  42° C.                                                                               0.029      <0.029                                         TE 144  32° C.                                                                               0.983      1.000                                                  42° C.                                                                               0.897      0.846                                          TE 146  32° C.                                                                               0.981      0.981                                                  42° C.                                                                               0.912      0.294                                          ______________________________________                                          TE 33 CRT 46 nal.sup.r R 100 Hfr                                               TE 82 CRT 46 R 1001 Hfr                                                        TE 120 CRT 46 FHfr                                                             TE 144 CRT 46 Spontaneous thermoresistant revertant                            TE 146 CRT 46 nal.sup.r Spontaneous thermoresistant revertant            

(B) Toxicity:

In an acute toxicity test with mice (CF #1, male, 4-week old), a solution of C-14482 A₁ in physiological saline was intraveously administered. The estimated LD₅₀ of this antibiotic was about 5 mg/kg.

As shown in Table 4, Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ has strong inhibitory activity against gram-negative, gram-positive and acid-fast bacteria. Therefore, the antibiotic C-14482 A₁ is useful as germicides or disinfectants.

Furthermore, the results reported in Table 5 show that this antibiotic is of value as an agent for eliminating R plasmids as well as a seemingly strong nucleic acid synthesis inhibitor and, accordingly, suggest that the present product is of use as an antitumor drug.

Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ can be used as germicides, disinfectants or drugs for external application, for example in the disinfection of dining ware, surgical instruments, bird cages, human hands, etc. When the antibiotic is used as a germicide, bactericide or disinfectant against bacteria such as those mentioned in Table 4, it can be used as a liquid preparation which may be prepared, for example by dissolving 10 mg of the antibiotic in 1000 to 2000 ml of water. To use this antibiotic as a drug for external application, it can be formulated into an ointment, for instance, by admixing 0.5 mg of C-14482 A₁ evenly with 10 g of white petrolatum.

For example, this antibiotic can be used, in a form of ointment containing 0.5 mg. of C-14482 A₁ with 10 g of white petrolatum for topical application to the prevention or treatment of fester of a wound caused by Staphylococcus aureus or by mixed infection with the microorganisms mentioned in Table 4 on a human hand by applying 0.02 g. to 0.2 g. of the ointment to the wound four times a day.

In another example, this antibiotic can be utilized in a form of liquid containing 10 mg. of C-14482 A₁ in 1000 to 2000 ml of water in the disinfectation by dipping dining ware, surgical instruments, bird cages or human hands into the liquid for about 10 minutes.

When administered to mice inoculated with leukaemia P388, C-14482 A₁ inhibits multiplication of the tumor cells and has potent life-span extending effects. Therefore, C-14482 A₁ is also useful as an antitumor agent for the treatment of tumor cells in mammals (e.g. mouse, rat, man).

The following examples are further illustrative of this invention.

In the examples, "part(s)" is based on weight unless otherwise noted and the relationship between "part(s)" and "part(s) by volume" corresponds to that between "gram(s)" and "milliliter(s)", and "%" is based on "weight/volume" unless otherwise noted. In the following examples percents of aqueous acetone and aqueous methanol in all occurrences are based on volume/volume.

EXAMPLE 1

A culture of Antibiotic C-14482 A₁ -producer Nocardia sp. No. C-14482 (IFO 13725, FERM-P No. 4130, ATCC 31309) on a yeast extract-malt extract-agar slant was used to inoculate a 200 parts by volume of Erlenmyer flask containing 40 parts by volume of a seed culture medium (pH 7.0) composed of 2% glucose, 3% of soluble starch, 1% of soybean flour, 1% of corn steep liquor, 0.5% of peptone, 0.3% of NaCl and 0.5% of CaCO₃, and shake culture was carried out on a rotary shaker at 28° C. for 48 hours, whereby a seed culture was obtained.

A 0.5 part by volume portion of this seed culture was transferred to a Erlenmyer flask of 200 parts by volume capacity containing 40 parts by volume of a fermentation medium (pH 7.0) composed of 5% of dextrin, 3% of soybean flour, 0.1% of peptone and 0.5% of CaCO₃, which was then incubated on a rotary shaker at 28° C. for 90 hours. This broth was assayed by agar dilution method against Staphylococcus aureus FDA 209 P and Proteus mirabilis IFO 3849 as test organisms using C-14482 A₁ as the standard. The titer thus found was 50 μg/ml.

EXAMPLE 2

A 10 part by volume portion of the seed culture obtained in Example 1 was transferred to a Sakaguchi flask of 2,000 parts by volume capacity containing 500 parts by volume of a seed culture medium similar to that prepared in Example 1 and the inoculated medium was cultivated at 28° C. for 48 hours. One thousand parts by volume of the culture were inoculated into 100×10³ parts by volume of the seed culture medium as above in a fermentation tank of 200×10³ parts by volume capacity. The medium was incubated at 28° C. for 48 hours, with aeration at the rate of 100×10³ parts by volume/min. and agitation at 200 r.p.m., whereby a seed culture was obtained. This seed culture was transferred to a 2,000×10³ parts by volume stainless steel-tank containing 1,000×10³ parts by volume of a fermentation medium described in Example 1, the inoculum size used being 10% and incubation was carried out at 28° C. for 90 hours, with aeration at the rate of 1,000×10³ parts by volume/min., agitation at 150 r.p.m. (1/3 DT) and an internal pressure of 1 kg/cm². The resultant broth showed a titer of 20 μg/ml as assayed in the same manner as described in Example 1.

The above broth was adjusted to pH 5.0 and filtered by the filter press with 30×10³ parts of Hyflo-Supercel (Johns Manville Co., U.S.A.). The filtrate (880×10³ parts by volume) was brought to pH 8.0 and passed through a column of 100×10³ parts by volume of Amberlite XAD-2. The column was washed with 300×10³ parts by volume of water and, then, elution was carried out with 250×10³ parts by volume of 50% aqueous acetone.

The eluate was distilled under reduced pressure to remove the acetone and the residual aqueous solution was adjusted to pH 6 and adsorbed on a column of 60×10³ parts by volume of Amberlite IRC-50 (H-form) After the column was washed with 180×10³ parts by volume of water, eluation was carried out with 180×10³ parts by volume of 0.2 N-hydrochloric acid. The eluate was brought to pH 6.0 and concentrated under reduced pressure. The concentrate (30×10³ parts by volume) was adjusted to pH 6.0 and was adsorbed on a column of 15×10³ parts by volume of Amberlite XAD-2, and the column was washed with 45×10³ parts by volume of water and elution was carried out with 60×10³ parts by volume of 50% aqueous acetone. The eluate was adjusted to pH 5-6 and concentrated under reduced pressure to about 1000 parts by volume.

To the concentrate was added 9×10³ parts by volume of acetone, whereupon 124 parts of crude product I were obtained.

The mother fluid was further distilled to remove the acetone and the residue was lyophilized, whereby 36 parts of crude product II were obtained.

In 450 parts by volume of water were dissolved 4.5 parts of crude product II and the solution was brought to pH 8 with dilute aqueous NH₄ OH and extracted repeatedly (4-5 times) with 225 parts by volume of CHCl₃. The CHCl₃ extracts were combined and the activity was transferred to an aqueous layer with use of 300 parts by volume of 1/200 N-hydrochloric acid. The wine-colored aqueous layer was adjusted to pH 5.5-6.0, concentrated under reduced pressure, adjusted to pH 6.0 and run onto a column of 170 parts by volume of Diaion HP-10 (non-ion-exchange resin, Mitsubishi Chemical Industries, Limited, Japan). The column was washed with 500 parts by volume of water and 700 parts by volume of 30% aqueous methanol in that order and, then, elution was carried out with 700 parts by volume of 80% aqueous methanol, whereby a wine-colored antibiotic activity was obtained.

The eluate was adjusted to pH 6, concentrated under reduced pressure and lyophilized. By the above procedure there was obtained 0.185 part of dark red powders. A 0.155 part portion of this product was subjected to thin-layer chromatography on silica gel (Merck, Germany, HF₂₅₄) (solvent: CHCl₃ -MeOH=10:1), and fractions, whose Rf value is 0.45, were collected and extracted with methanol, whereby 0.024 part of A₁ fraction was obtained.

0.02 part of the above A₁ fraction was purified by the thin-layer chromatography on silica gel (Merck, Germany HF₂₅₄) with a solvent system of ethyl acetate-methanol(10:1), whereby the purified A₁ fraction (0.009 part) was obtained by extraction with methanol from the corresponding band (Rf 0.33) to A₁. E_(lcm) ^(1%) of this C-14482 A₁ in methanol was 41.3 at 498 nm.

EXAMPLE 3

850×10³ parts by volume of a culture broth filtrate prepared by a procedure similar to that described in Example 2 was passed through a column of 85×10³ parts by volume of Amberlite XAD-2, after the column was washed with water (255×10³ parts by volume), elution was carried out with 210×10³ parts by volume of 50% aqueous acetone. The eluate was distilled to remove the acetone and the residual aqueous solution was adjusted to pH 6.0 and adsorbed on a column of 51×10³ parts by volume of Amberlite IRC-50 (H-form). After the column was washed with 150×10³ parts by volume of water, elution was carried out with 150×10³ parts by volume of 0.2 N-HCl. The eluate was adjusted to pH 5.5-6.0, concentrated under reduced pressure to about 50×10³ parts by volume and adsorbed on a column of 12×10³ parts by volume of Amberlite XAD-2. The column was washed with water and elution was carried out with 18×10³ parts by volume of 50% aqueous acetone. The eluate was adjusted to pH 5.5-6.0, concentrated under reduced pressure and lyophilized. By the above procedure were obtained 118.3 parts of crude powders of C-14482 A₁.

In 9×10³ parts by volume of water were dissolved 90 parts of the above crude powders and the solution was brought to pH 8.0 with dilute aqueous NH₄ OH and extracted with 3×10³ parts by volume of n-butanol three times.

The extracts were combined and transferred twice into aqueous layers with 3×10³ parts by volume of N/200 HCl. The water layers were pooled, adjusted to pH 6. The n-butanol was removed and the residual aqueous solution (pH 6) was poured onto a column of 4.5×10³ parts by volume of Diaion HP-10(Mitsubishi Chemical Industries Limited). The column was washed with 13.5×10³ parts by volume of water and 9×10³ parts by volume of 30% aqueous methanol in that order and elution was carried out with 13.5×10³ parts by volume of 80% aqueous methanol, whereby 3.45 parts of an A₁ -rich fraction (F-1) were obtained.

The above A₁ -rich fraction (F-1) (3.0 parts) was adsorbed on a column of 150 parts of silica gel (Merck, Germany) and elution was carried out with solvent mixtures of chloroform and methanol, 50:1 (1.3×10³ parts by volume), 25:1 (1×10³ parts by volume) and 10:1 (1×10³ parts by volume), in the order mentioned. Finally, elution was carried out with 1×10³ parts by volume of methanol.

The elution with a mixture of CHCl₃ : MeOH(25:1) yielded 0.368 part of an A₁ -rich fraction. 0.340 part of the A₁ -rich fraction was purified by thin-layer chromatography on silica gel (Merck, HF₂₅₄) with a solvent mixture of chloroform and methanol (9:1), whereby 0.109 part of C-14482 A₁ was obtained as purified dark red crystalline powders.

Analysis (after dried at 60° C., 30 hours in vacuo): C, 59.18; H, 5.70; N, 17.14; λ_(max) ^(MeOH) 498 nm(E_(lcm) ^(1%) 48.3)

EXAMPLE 4

900×10³ parts by volume of a culture broth prepared in the same manner as Example 2 was adjusted to pH 4.0 with 4 N-H₂ SO₄, followed by addition of 800×10³ parts by volume of acetone. The mixture was stirred for 3 hours. 30×10³ parts of Hyflo-Supercel (Johns Manville Co., U.S.A.) were added and were filtered by the filter press. The filtrate was adjusted to pH 5.5 and concentrated under reduced pressure to 800×10³ parts by volume. The acetone was removed and the residual aqueous solution was adjusted to pH 6.0 and passed through a column of 90×10³ parts by volume of Diaion HP-10. The column was washed with 270×10³ parts by volume of water and elution was carried out with 250×10³ parts by volume of 50% aqueous acetone.

The acetone was removed and the residual aqueous solution (100×10³ parts by volume) was adjusted to pH 8.0 and extracted three times with 30×10³ parts by volume of iso-butanol. The extracts were pooled and the active substance was transferred twice with 60×10³ parts by volume of N/200-HCl into an aqueous layer. The isobutanol contained in the aqueous layers was removed by distillation at pH 5-6 under reduced pressure. The residual aqueous solution was adjusted to pH 6.0 and poured onto a column of Diaion HP-10 (45×10³ parts by volume). The column was washed with water and elution was carried out with 135×10³ parts by volume of 50% aqueous acetone. The eluate was adjusted to pH 6, concentrated under reduced pressure and lyophilized. By the above procedure was obtained 82 parts of C-14482 A₁ -rich crude powders (f-1).

In 1.5×10³ parts by volume of water were dissolved 15 parts of the above powders (f-1) and the active substance was extracted four times with 750 parts by volume of CHCl₃ at pH 8.0 (adjusted with dil. NH₄ OH) and transferred to 750 parts by volume of 1/200 N-HCl twice. The water layers were combined and, at pH 6, and concentrated under reduced pressure. The concentrate was passed onto a column of 400 parts by volume of Diaion HP-10 and after the column was washed with 1.2×10³ parts by volume of water and 1.2×10³ parts by volume of 30% aqueous methanol in that order, elution was carried out with 1.2×10³ parts by volume of 80% aqueous methanol. The eluate was adjusted to pH 6, concentrated under reduced pressure and lyophilized. By the above procedure there was obtained 0.393 part of dark reddish brown powders rich in A₁. A 0.375 part portion of this powdery product was purified by silica gel column chromatography and thin-layer chromatography as in Example 2 and 3. In this manner, 0.02 part of C-14482 A₁ was obtained as purified dark red crystals.

Analysis (after dried at 60° C., 30 hours in vacuo): C, 58.02; H, 5.84; N, 16.32; λ_(max) ^(MeOH) 498 nm(E_(lcm) ^(1%) 44.2) 

What we claim is:
 1. A biologically pure culture of the microorganism belonging to the genus Nocardia having the characteristics identifiable with those of ATCC-31309, said culture being capable of producing in a culture medium containing assimilable carbon and digestible nitrogen sources, a recoverable amount of Antibiotic C-14482 A₁. 